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Being a member of a self-advocacy group: experiences of intellectually disabled people
- Authors:
- GILMARTIN Ann, SLEVIN Eamonn
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38(3), September 2010, pp.152-159.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The aim of this study was to explore the lived experiences of belonging to a self-advocacy group for people with intellectual disabilities. The participants were 13 persons with intellectual disabilities who had attended three self-advocacy day centre based groups in a city in the west of Ireland for a minimum of six months. Data was collected by means of semi-structured interviews in which the participant talked about how it felt to be a member of a self-advocacy group. The descriptions were arranged into two main categories: ‘functioning as a group’; and ‘impact of group membership on personal lives’. The results showed that the participants felt their lives had improved and they were more fulfilled as a result of being part of their self-advocacy group. Empowerment occurred for the participants' both at an individual and collective basis, and a greater sense of self-determination and autonomy was evident in their lives by the opportunities to make choices. The article concludes that opportunities should be provided for adults with an intellectual disability who are not attending day services to join self-advocacy groups in a community setting as there were clear benefits identified in this study from group membership. A recognition that service providers need to take on board the value that can result from self-advocacy groups was also apparent.